Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1887-03-28
N0AH'S TRIP In THE ARK.
TALMAGE PICTURES THE FA-
NOUS BIBLICAL VOYAGE.

The Ancient Man Looking Upon the
Shipwreck of "A Race-AIl the Present
Generation Warned to Hurry Into the
Ark of SalvatiOn-The Pierced Side of
Christ its Door.
DIS MONIES, IA, March 27.-The Rev.
L. Dewitt Talmage, ID. D., preached in
this city this morning to vast con grega-
ton. His text was Genesis, viii, /:
"Come thou and all thy house into the
ark" The eloquent preacher said:
We do not need the Bible to prove the
Deluge. The geologist's hammer an
nounces it. Sea shells and marine forma-
tions on the top OF some OF the highest
mountains of the earth prove that at some
time the waters washed over the top of
the Alps and the Andes. In what way
the catastrophe came we know not;
whether by the stroke of a comet or by
flashes OF lightning, changing the air into
water; or by a stroke of the hand of Goo, ,
like the stroke of the AK between the
horns of the OK, the earth staggered. To
meet the catastrophe, God ordered a
great ship built. 1t was to be without
Prov, for it was to sail to no shore, 1t
was W OC NltuOub uSlu1, lOI llO uuuldu
hand should guide it. 1t was vast
structure-probably as large as two or
three Cunard steamers. 1t was the Great
Eastern OF olden time.
The ship Is done. The door is open /.
The lizards crawl in. The cattle walk
in. The grass-hoppers hop in. The birds
fly in. The invitation goes forth to Noah ::
"Come thou and all thy house into the
ark" just one human family embark
on the strange voyage, and | hear the
door slam shut. A great storm sweeps
along the hills, and bends the cedars until
all the branches snap in the gale. There
is moan in the wind like unto the moan
of dying world. The blackness OF the
heavens is shattered by the flare of the
ltghtnings that look down into the waters
and throw ghastliness on the face of the
mountains. How strange it looksl How
sutfocating the air seems! The big drops
Of rain plash upon the upturned faces Of
those who are watching the tempest.
Crash! go the rocks in cOnvulsion. Boom
go the bursting heavens. The inhabi-
tants of the earth, instead of fleeing to
house top and mountain top, as men have
fancied, sit down in dumb, white horror,
10 die. For when God grinds mountains
te pieces, and let's the ocean slip its cable,
there is no place for men to fly to. See
the ark pitch and tumble i'll the surf,
while from Its windows the passengers
look out upon the ship-wreck Of race,
and the carcasses OF a dead world. Woe
to the mountains! Woe TO the seal
l am no alarmist. When, on Sept. 20,
after the wind has for three days been
blowing from the northeast, you prOphesy
that the equinoctlal storm is coming, you
simply state fact not to be disputed.
Neither am l an alarmist when l say
that storm is coming, compared with
which Noah's deluge was but an April
shower; and that it is the wisest and
safest tor you and for me to get safely
housed for eternity. The invitation that
went forth to Noah sounds in our ears /:
'Come thou and all tiny house into The
ark"
Well, how did Noah and his family
come into the arkp Did they climb in at
the window, or come down the roof? No;
they went through the door. And just
so, if we get into the ark of Gods mercy,
it will be through Christ the door. The
entrance to the ark OF old must have been
a very large entrance. We know that it
was, from the fact that there were
monster animals In the earlier ages !;
and, in order to get them into the ark two
and two, according TO the Bible state
ment, the door must have been very wide
and very high. So the door into the
mercy of God is large door. We 20 In,
not two by two, but by hundreds, and by
thousands, and by millions. Yea, all tine
nations OF the earth may go in, ten mil
lions abreast.
The door OF the ancient ark was in the
side. So now it Is through the side OF
Christ-the pierced side, the wide open
side, the heart side e-that we enter. An,
the Roman soldier, thrustIng his spear
into the Saviours side, expected only to
let the blood out, but he opened the way
to let all the world in. o what a broad
gospel to preachl Ii a man is about to
give an entertainment he issues one or
two hundred Invitations, carefully put
up and directed to the particular persons
whom he wishes to entertain. But GOD
our Father makes banquet. and goes out
to the front door Of heaven and stretches
out his hands over land and sea, and,
with voice that penetrates the Hindoo
Jungle, and the Greenland ice-castle, and
Brazilian grove, and English factory,
and American home, cries out, "Come,
for all things are now ready" 1t is a
wide doorl The old cross has been taken
apart and its two pieces are stood up for
the door posts, so tar apart that all the
world can come in. Kings scatter treas
ures on days of great rejoicing. So
Christ, our King, comes and scatters the
he hoped 10 get into heaven through the
crevices OF the door. But he was not
obliged thus to go in. After having preach
ed the gospel in Surrey Chapel, going
up toward heaven. the gate-keepeT cried !:
"Litt up your heads, ye everlasting gates,
and let this man come in" The dying
thief went in. Richard Baxter and Rob-
ert Newton went in. Europe, Asia,
Africa, North and South America may yet
60 through this wide door without crowd
ing. Ho, every onel all conditions, all
ranks, all people. Luther said that this
truth was worth carrying on ones knees
from Rome to Jerusalem; but | think IT
worth carrying oil around tke aruhnSI d
all around the heavens. .09ac Wood 30
loved the world that He gave His only be-
gotten Son, that whOsoever belieVeth in
Him should not perish, but have eVerlast-
ing lite" WnosOever Will, let him come
through the large door. Archimedes
wanted fulcrum on which 10 place his
lever, and then he said that be could
move the world. Calvary is the fulcrum,
and the cross OF Christ IL the lever; and
by that power all nations shall yet be
lifted.
Further: IL is door that swings both
ways. do not know whether the door
OF the ancient ark was lifted. or rolled on
hinges; but this door OF Christ opens both
ways. 1t swings out toward all our
woes; IL swings in toward the raptures OF
heaven. IL swings IN TO let us in; 1t
swings out to let our ministerlng ones
come out. All are one in Chrlst-Chris-
tians on earth and saints In heaven.